IANA: Intermodal lifts in second quarter top 2005 peak season

IANA: Intermodal lifts in second quarter top 2005 peak season    Intermodal volume in the second quarter of this year topped 2005’s peak season levels, and grew 5.9 percent compared to the second quarter of last year, according to Intermodal Market Trends & Statistics, a quarterly publication of the Intermodal Association of North America.
   The 3.58 million second quarter intermodal loads topped last year’s fourth quarter peak of 3.56 million, IANA said. On a monthly basis, June volume of 1.24 million loads topped last year’s October peak of 1.23 million. This was the first time since IANA started reporting loadings in 1996 that the prior year’s quarterly and monthly peaks were exceeded in the first half of the following year.
   International containers dominated growth, adding more than 9 percent and accounting for more than 90 percent of the second quarter’s gain. The increase resulted from continued strength in container imports from Asia, particularly at Pacific Southwest ports, IANA said. The international gain accelerated from a 7.6 percent increase in the first quarter.
   Domestic intermodal growth also extended into the second quarter, though at a slower pace than the first quarter’s 4.4 percent gain. The industry’s shift to larger domestic boxes continued, with 53-foot domestic containers adding 24 percent following the first quarter’s 31 percent increase.